The Why and How of Community Life

Summary of the talk given at the first meeting of St. Mary's Prayer Fellowship in Sugarland, Texas.
മലയാളത്തില്‍ ചെയ്ത പ്രഭാഷണം ഇവിടെ കേള്‍ക്കുക

Dear brothers and sisters,

As we are having the first meeting of St. Mary’s Prayer Fellowship, I am honored and humbled for this wonderful opportunity to be a part of this celebration and share your joy and excitement.

This new beginning gives us an opportunity to ask the basic questions about our community such as why we exist as a community and how we should exist. This will help us to lay a very strong foundation to our community so that it can grow to its full potential.

Why we exist as a community is the primary question we need to consider. Why can’t we live our life as individuals? Why should we live together? A community is basically a support group in which the members support one another. We never live in isolation apart from a community. We are born into a community called family. This community is actually a family of families.

Let me explain why we all need to be in a community supporting each other. There is an old story of a blind man and a lame man living together. In isolation, each had a very miserable life. When they started living together, life became a lot easier for them. One could see for both, and the other could walk for both. In isolation, every human being is handicapped. Our handicap may not be physical; it could also be emotional, intellectual, or even economical. When we live together in a community, our handicaps will be compensated to some extent. Apostle Paul explained this idea with a beautiful metaphor. He said that a community is like a body. A body is made of various organs. These organs exist only as parts of the body. In isolation, they don’t have existence. The eyes can see. But that is the only ability of the eyes, and so in isolation, eyes are handicapped. The eyes see not just for themselves, but for the whole body. Similarly, the ears hear, legs walk, and the nose smells for the whole body. Like the organs in a body, we are all different from one another. Our skills and aptitudes are different. But each of us is good at something. Whatever we are good at, let us use it for the good of the whole community.

Together, as a community, we do not exist in isolation from the rest of the world. This small community is a part of the human community at various levels. This parish community is a part of the global community of the Indian Orthodox Church, and thus of the Christian community in the world. This community is also a part of this nation, and thus of the global human community. As a community, we have to find out what we are good at, and we need to use it for the good of the higher levels of human community.

We have already seen why we exist as a community. Now we need to turn to the question of how we can serve this purpose.

The first thing is that we need to stay united all the time. The primary characteristic of a community is that it must have unity. There cannot be a comm-unity without unity. Whatever happens in a community, we should not sacrifice our unity. We must keep our relationships intact. Let me explain how this is possible. Every relationship is based on an agreement between/ among the parties involved. When a party breaks an agreement, the relationship will be broken. If this happens, immediately the party that breaks the agreement has to apologize for the mistake, and the other party has to forgive. This way, broken relationships can be immediately mended.

I want to point out two examples from the Bible. One is an example of what we should do, but the other is an example of what we should not do. The story of Adam and Eve gives us an example of a bad relationship. Their relationship with God depended on an agreement. They broke the agreement, and thus they broke their relationship as well. What they did or didn’t do after the relationship was broken is crucial. They didn’t do anything to mend the broken relationship. They aggravated the problem by placing the blame on others. They didn’t apologize for their mistake, and so God couldn’t forgive them either.

The story of Esau and Jacob is an example of a good relationship. Jacob Cheats Esau, his own brother. He realized his mistake when he was cheated by his own uncle. He went back, willing to apologize. He knelt down seven times before his brother and asked his forgiveness, and Esau forgave him right away.

Any relationship can be broken any time. But any broken relationship can be mended if we are willing to apologize and forgive. We all need to learn to apologize and forgive in preparation for a broken relationship that can happen any time. It is like being prepared for a fire by having the fire-extinguishing equipment and by practicing fire drills. Before getting into any relationship, we need to practice the apology-forgiveness drill so that we can save relationships and be in unity.

If we need to stay united among each other, we need to stay united with God as individuals and as community. Our relationship with God is also based on agreements. If we break an agreement with God, immediately, we should apologize, and reconcile with God right away. Without maintaining unity with God, we cannot maintain unity among ourselves.

Our Qurbana, our prayer meetings, our Sunday school, our women’s association, and our men’s association—all these must have the primary purpose of maintaining unity with God and among ourselves. If we grow in unity, we will be able to serve our calling. We will be able to support each other within our community, and we, as a community, will be able to serve the human community.

Thus we will become a community of people that serve each other, and serve the world. This is what our Lord Jesus Christ modeled for us in his life, and this is what we are called for. That is the will of God for us. May God bless us to fulfill this calling!